Macbeth
By
William Shakespeare
Act III:
Scene 1

MACBETH.Ay, in the catalogue ye go for men;As hounds, and greyhounds, mongrels, spaniels, curs,Shoughs, water-rugs, and demi-wolves are cleptAll by the name of dogs: the valu'd fileDistinguishes the swift, the slow, the subtle,The house-keeper, the hunter, every oneAccording to the gift which bounteous natureHath in him clos'd; whereby he does receiveParticular addition, from the billThat writes them all alike: and so of men.Now, if you have a station in the file,Not i' the worst rank of manhood, say it;And I will put that business in your bosoms,Whose execution takes your enemy off;Grapples you to the heart and love of us,Who wear our health but sickly in his life,Which in his death were perfect.

SECOND MURDERER.I am one, my liege,Whom the vile blows and buffets of the worldHave so incens'd that I am reckless whatI do to spite the world.

FIRST MURDERER.And I another,So weary with disasters, tugg'd with fortune,That I would set my life on any chance,To mend it or be rid on't.

MACBETH.Both of youKnow Banquo was your enemy.

BOTH MURDERERS.True, my lord.

MACBETH.So is he mine; and in such bloody distance,That every minute of his being thrustsAgainst my near'st of life; and though I couldWith barefac'd power sweep him from my sight,And bid my will avouch it, yet I must not,For certain friends that are both his and mine,Whose loves I may not drop, but wail his fallWho I myself struck down: and thence it isThat I to your assistance do make love;Masking the business from the common eyeFor sundry weighty reasons.

SECOND MURDERER.We shall, my lord,Perform what you command us.

FIRST MURDERER.Though our lives —

MACBETH.Your spirits shine through you. Within this hour at most,I will advise you where to plant yourselves;Acquaint you with the perfect spy o' the time,The moment on't; for't must be done to-nightAnd something from the palace; always thoughtThat I require a clearness; and with him, —To leave no rubs nor botches in the work, —Fleance his son, that keeps him company,Whose absence is no less material to meThan is his father's, must embrace the fateOf that dark hour. Resolve yourselves apart:I'll come to you anon.

BOTH MURDERERS.We are resolv'd, my lord.

MACBETH.I'll call upon you straight: abide within.

[Exeunt Murderers.]

It is concluded: — Banquo, thy soul's flight,If it find heaven, must find it out to-night.